Nick grew his career, in part, by getting good at doing things that nobody else wanted to do. As he climbed the ladder in human resources — that meant excelling at laying people off. In this episode, we chat with an expert to understand what goes on behind the scenes when companies decide it's time for a layoff. 


Hear more from Nick on his podcast, Paint for Thought.

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

When a layoff ends, it’s easy to look back and see the big lesson learned. But when you’re in the thick of it, with no end in sight, it’s really hard to see how you’re growing. A few months into his layoff journey, Derek shares how his perspective and approach have changed as it continues to drag on. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

In her last job, Sarah knew that her talent and skills weren't being utilized to the best of their ability. It's fair to say that it wasn't her dream job. So when the opportunity came up to volunteer to be laid off — she took it. And if you think volunteering to be unemployed in this job market is courageous — wait until you hear what she did next.

More information:
Watch Sarah's first set on youtube. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

Sometimes getting laid off gives you the freedom you need to follow your heart. At the start of his career, Dan was laid off from back-to-back jobs. When he reflects back now, nearly a decade later, he can see how it all worked out for the best. 

 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

When you get laid off, the length of time between jobs is all about balance. Take too long, and your finances are stressed and you start amassing self-doubt. But if you don’t take long enough you might not have time to process and heal from what can can be a pretty traumatic experience. 

Maggie jumped into a new job just four weeks after getting let go. She had to do her healing on the fly in the midst of burning the candle at both ends in her new role. An approach that turns out — was not very sustainable. As she looks back nearly a year later, she shares how she learned to make it all work on her terms. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

When Craig got laid off alongside 9,999 of his colleagues last year, he immediately closed his laptop and went right to work updating his resume. And in his subsequent job search, when he gets rejected he just archives it and moves on. One foot forward at a time. This all sounds good in theory, but how does he actually do it? For decisions that feel so personal, how does he put it behind him and leave it there? For Craig, it starts with knowing who you are independent of where you work and what you do.

Producer's Note: When I edited this podcast on January 8th, 2023 there were 28 tech companies with layoffs so far this year. When it launched just 4 days later on January 12th, there were  57 tech companies with layoffs impacting nearly 22K employees according to layoffs.fyi.

Resources:
A Massive LinkedIn Study Reveals Who Can Actually Helps You Get That Job

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

Surviving a layoff often teaches you big lessons. For Karissa, among other things, she learned that she could get through it. So when her new job shifted some policies that impacted her ability to work remotely — it was that lesson of resilience that was top of mind. Fueled by the belief that her career goals and her life goals could live in harmony, she did what she felt she had to do.



Ito, A. (2022). The hidden upside of tech layoffs. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-layoffs-workers-new-jobs-salary-raises-2022-12

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

Sarah was an A-student. A hard-working, over-achiever who had thrown herself into her career. She spent over a decade in social media marketing and in that time, she advanced her title and deepened her expertise. But, when the pandemic hit, it crystallized for her that work was not as important as she had made it out to be. Plus, when she looked around, she didn’t see a future for herself in the field. So, when she got laid off for the second time, just days before her 30th birthday, she decided to make a change.

In 2022, there have been almost 150,000 layoffs in tech across nearly 1,000 companies. You can track the impact online at Layoffs.fyi. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

When Acacia got laid off last summer she was just days out from a cross country move and a brand new mortgage. As the primary earner in her family, she was terrified. So she channeled her fear into her job her search and she managed to land a new role in just five weeks. 

All of that urgency and churn left her little time to process her emotions in the moment. Now that the dust has settled, she's had a chance to reflect and understand some big lessons from her layoff. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

Ryan has been laid off an incredible eight times. And while that sounds like a lot, it was pretty par for the course in the industry. Besides, he usually bounced back quickly. But after the eighth time he decided to make a change. What he didn't know, was how hard it would be to hold out. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

The longer you go without a job, the harder it gets to see an end to your situation. The rejections are piling up, you start running out of money, and you begin to wonder if you'll ever be employed again. And, if you do find a job, how low will you have to lower the bar?

Jamie was out of work for over a year and asking herself all these same questions. That is until she used an unconventional method to make landing her dream job a reality.

Links:
For more information on the program Jamie mentions, check out To Be Magnetic. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.

Becky got laid off at the tail end of the great resignation. By all accounts, she was grateful to make a financially supported exit from a work environment she no longer wanted to be a part of. But getting laid off is never easy — even when you want it. Soon, the experience had her steeped in self-doubt and unsure of how to make a comeback.

Notes, Links, & Resources:
Listen to How to Bounce Back from Burnout from Slate.

Special thank you to an incredible friend and gifted actor John Catron, who joined me on a Saturday to fire me via zoom for the opening re-enactment in this episode. Catch John in the upcoming production of A Christmas Carol at the Guthrie Theater. 

Audio sweetening from Tyson Kroening. 

Lay Off Me is written, produced, and reluctantly hosted by Becky Olstad. Connect with us and share your layoff story over at LayOffMePod.com or @LayOffMePod on Instagram.